


Mistletoe

by SkyBlue2003



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Bruce Banner Needs a Hug, Bruce Banner-centric, Christmas Party, First Kiss, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Mistletoe, Pretty much everything but Bruce/Thor is a background relationship, Tony is the #1 shipper
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2018-12-23
Packaged: 2019-09-25 03:23:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17113508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SkyBlue2003/pseuds/SkyBlue2003
Summary: It's the holiday season, and Tony is determined to get everyone together with strategically placed mistletoe. Bruce wants no part of it, but most things with Tony are unavoidable.





	Mistletoe

**Author's Note:**

> And so continues my saga of one word titles. It would seem as if I'm a YA author.
> 
> I just put all the ships in this honestly, I'm sorry.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! :)

Tony Stark knew how to throw a party. Especially the annual Avengers holiday party, which seemed to get more extravagant every year. The Avengers facility was always decked out with decorations from every holiday tradition Tony could find. However, there was a new addition to the decorations this year.

“Tony what’s with all the mistletoe?” Bruce asked, walking into the common area where the party was being held later that night.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Brucie Bear,” Tony replied, feigning shock as he hung the eighteenth bough of mistletoe on the ceiling.

Bruce sighed. “Tony, that’s poisonous. And Peter can walk on the ceiling. It’s a safety hazard.”

“You think Peter would eat mistletoe?” Bruce raised an eyebrow. “Actually, he definitely would,” Tony conceded. “I’ll talk to him. Why are you so concerned about mistletoe, anyway?”

“I…well, you know the tradition with mistletoe. I’m not really interested in embarrassing myself by kissing anyone.”

“What about Thor?” Tony asked.

“Thor? What? We’re friends! Close friends, that’s all.” Tony smirked. Bruce could feel heat rising to his cheeks. “You know what, I’ll just avoid the mistletoe tonight. Bye, Tony,” He concluded, walking out. This was going to be a stressful night.

***

By the time the party rolled around, Bruce had made a comprehensive mistletoe map, knowing which spots to avoid and sitting down on one of the plush couches, far out of range. He planned to barely move the whole time.

Soon enough, people started trickling in. Some noticed the mistletoe, and some didn’t even acknowledge it. The first to get caught under it were Colonel Rhodes and Tony, which Bruce was sure was intentional at least on Tony’s part. Rhodes shrugged. “With all I’ve put up with through the years, we’re basically married anyway.” Tony laughed and briefly kissed him. Bruce noticed Strange looking miffed in the background as Tony walked toward Bruce’s couch.

“See, mistletoe’s not so scary,” Tony said, sitting down next to Bruce. “It’s not embarrassing to kiss a _close friend_.”

“You’d better tell Strange that you and Rhodey are only friends. He looked a bit murderous earlier.” Tony flushed. “Do you think he likes Rhodey? I could definitely try to set them up.”

Bruce rolled his eyes at Tony. “He likes _you_. Now go talk to him before someone else snags him.” Tony excused himself to find Strange.

The next to get caught were Vision and Wanda, who shared a sweet kiss before returning to the party. Scott and Clint followed, exaggerating the kiss and jokingly proclaiming their undying love for each other. Hope and Natasha looked on fondly, playfully commiserating the loss of their respective partners, then having their own kiss under the mistletoe.

Bruce had managed to stay safely on the couch throughout the party, watching his friends enjoying themselves. Thor sat down next to him suddenly, startling Bruce. Bruce smiled fondly at the god. Their bond had grown stronger since their adventure an Sakaar, and Bruce had found comfort with him. Thor was like a constant ray of sunshine, never failing to make Bruce feel warm and happy.

“My apologies, Banner. I just thought I should tell you that Stark mentioned something about making you stand under the mistletoe. It seems that there is a Midgardian tradition about mistletoe, yes?”

Bruce nodded. “I shouldn’t be surprised that Tony wants me out there. But it would be better if he’d stand under the mistletoe with Strange.”

“That may happen, Banner. Look.” Thor pointed at Tony, who was walking towards Strange. There was a bough of mistletoe right above Strange’s head. Bruce smiled as he saw Tony feign surprise at the mistletoe above them. “Well, Mr. Doctor, it _is_ tradition. Pucker up.” Strange rolled his eyes and leaned in to kiss Tony. Instead of breaking away quickly, as he had with Rhodey, Tony put a hand on the sorcerer’s waist and pulled him closer. Strange melted into Tony, continuing the kiss.

They probably would’ve continued like that for quite some time if it wasn’t for Peter wrapping both of them up in a hug. “I knew it! Mr. Stark wouldn’t stop talking about you, Mr. Strange. You really butter his eggroll.”

“Peter, what does that even mean?” Tony asked, confused.

“It means you love him! Also I won my bet with Ned. You owe me 10 dollars.” Ned, who had come to stand beside Peter, sighed. He fished a 10-dollar bill out of his pocket. “Man, I really thought Stony was forever.” Peter put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, smiling warmly.

“Oh, look, you guys are under some mistletoe,” Tony said slyly. He had undoubtedly planned this. Peter and Ned stood awkwardly for a moment until Peter gathered the courage to press a kiss onto his lips. Ned looked shocked, and Peter was blushing very hard. “M-merry Christmas, Ned,” Peter managed to stammer. “You too, Peter.” Ned squeaked, some color returning to his face. They ran in opposite directions.

“Well that was quite the spectacle,” Thor remarked. “Yeah, I’m glad Tony hasn’t managed to trap me under any mistletoe,” Bruce laughed. Thor glanced at Bruce. “Actually, I wouldn’t mind,” the god said. Bruce felt heat rising to his cheeks. Did Thor want to kiss him?

No, that was impossible. He was probably hoping for someone else. Bruce didn’t want to ask. They sat there in awkward silence until Thor excused himself to get a drink.

As soon as Thor left, Tony slid onto the couch next to Bruce. “Stephen is the best kisser I’ve ever known, including myself. I mean, I knew he could run his mouth, but _damn_.”

Bruce laughed. “I’d rather not hear any more of that. So are you two officially a couple?”

Tony sighed dreamily. “Yes. He even got us matching necklaces as a present. Look!” He pulled down his collar, revealing a delicate pendant and something decidedly less romantic.

“Tony, is that a hickey? Already? It’s been ten minutes!”

“Chill out, Brucie Bear. We haven’t done anything too scandalous. Yet.” Bruce sighed fondly. “Anyway, I couldn’t miss my next mistletoe pair. There they are now!” He pointed to Steve and Bucky. “I put Steve’s sketchbook under some mistletoe and told Bucky he needed help finding it.”

“You really need to work on your understanding of boundaries.”

“I’m just helping people find love.” Bruce rolled his eyes. Tony tugged on his sleeve excitedly. “Look! They found the sketchbook!”

The pair stood under a bough of mistletoe as they laughed at something in Steve’s sketchbook. “Is that really what I look like when I work out, Stevie?” Bucky asked. “Yes, Buck, you look absolutely ridiculous. You’re lucky you’re usually so gorgeous.”

Bucky flushed. “Well, you’re gorgeous even when you’re working out, so I think you win.” Steve blushed too.

“Hey, there’s some mistletoe above you guys! You should kiss now!” Tony yelled across the room, earning a disapproving look from Bruce.

Bucky cocked an eyebrow. “Wow, a kiss from _Captain America_! Golly, I can barely contain myself.”

“Shut up,” Steve said affectionately as he leaned in. The men shared a slow kiss, Steve breaking away after a few seconds.

Bucky smiled. “Punk.”

“Jerk.”

“Meet in my room later?” Bucky asked flirtatiously. Steve almost choked on his drink. “Y-yeah.” Sam rolled his eyes. “Please don’t make Steve go into shock, Barnes. Not that I can relate to liking that ugly mug of yours.” Bucky made a crude hand gesture while Steve looked on warmly.

Tony flashed a smug smile at Bruce. “See?”

Bruce laughed. “Well, I’d appreciate if you’d leave my love life alone.” Tony looked devastated. “But… Thor.”

Before Bruce could respond, Peter flopped onto the couch next to Tony. “Mr. Stark I can’t find Ned and I think I ruined our friendship and he probably doesn’t want to see me now and oh god he probably hates me and I don’t know what to do and—”

“Hey, hey! Slow down kid. I’m sure he doesn’t hate you. He just needs some time to process.”

“B-but what if he doesn’t ever talk to me again? Why did I ruin our friendship like that?”

Tony put an arm around Peter’s shoulder. “Ned would never do that to you. Look, there he is now.”

Ned walked in, shirtless, holding a guitar. His eyes lit up as he saw Peter. He pointed at him, then strummed the guitar and started shouting at the top of his lungs. “I love you, bitch. I ain’t never gonna stop loving you, _bitch_!”

Peter ran across the room to wrap Ned in a hug. “I thought you didn’t want to see me.”

Ned smiled. “Nah, I just thought that was some kind of fever dream or something. I mean, I’ve had a crush on you for a _really_ long time. Then you kissed me! Right here!” He pointed to his mouth. Peter laughed and squeezed Ned tighter. “I’m so happy! FRIDAY, play Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley.”

“You know, I will never understand his generation,” Tony remarked as Rick Astley crooned in the background. “Anyway, Brucie Bear, it’s getting late. The party will be wrapping up soon, so I think it’s safe to venture off of the couch. Plus, I’m meeting Strange in half an hour.” Tony waggled his eyebrows. “Anyway, I’m off for one more sweep of the guests.” He waved to Bruce as he left.

As Tony had predicted, guests were leaving after a few minutes. Bruce deemed it safe to stand up and walk towards the door. Unfortunately, with a total of 20 boughs of mistletoe (Bruce had counted), nothing was safe. He’d been lulled into a false sense of security and had forgotten his mistletoe map.

Of course it was Thor. He bumped into him mere inches away from the door, from safety. “My apologies, Banner,” the god said. Bruce hoped he wouldn’t notice the—

“Ah! Mistletoe!” Thor exclaimed like a happy child. Bruce pursed his lips. “You don’t… we don’t have to. Nobody seems to have noticed.” Thor nodded, but Bruce thought he saw a flicker of disappointment cross his face. No, that couldn’t be. Bruce tried to walk towards the door, but a glowing blue barrier suddenly materialized. Some sort of bell chime went off as an alarm. Suddenly, everyone came flooding back in.

Bruce saw Tony try to sneak out. “Tony! What did you do? Turn this thing off!” Tony sighed. “It only turns off if you kiss.”

Bruce was shocked. “Tony, why would you do this?”

“I was making sure everyone followed the rules! And why does it matter so much if you kiss Thor?”

“Because we’re friends! This would make things awkward!”

“Bruce, please. We all know you’ve been sleeping in Thor’s room for weeks. I’m pretty sure you share a bed.”

“That doesn’t mean we…you know…”

“Fondue?” Steve interjected, earning a laugh and punch on the arm from Bucky.

Bruce took a breath, trying to calm down. “You know I have nightmares, Tony. Thor helps calm me down. He’s the only person here that the big guy feels comfortable around, so if something happens…” Bruce trailed off, not wanting to think about what would happen if he hulked out with anyone besides Thor. Noticing Bruce’s worry, Thor began rubbing comforting circles on his back.

“Why would you think someone like Thor would ever want someone like me?”

Thor turned to face Bruce. “Banner. _Bruce._ There are so many reasons that anyone would fall in love with you. First of all, you’re incredibly intelligent. Even past the PhD’s, you have a deeper understanding of the universe than most could even fathom. And you always want to help others, even at the expense of your own happiness. You were willing to sacrifice yourself for my people. When you smile, you look like an angel, and the world stops every time. There’s so much more, and I…” he took a deep breath. “I love you, Bruce.”

Bruce was crying now, tears of pure distilled joy. “I love you too, Thor. You’re the brightest person I’ve ever known. You can always dispel the darkness. And you care so, so much. You always see the good in people and bring it out. You saved me, Thor. You save me every day. Even when I’m at my lowest, you’re there. You’ve always been there; I was just too oblivious to see it.”

Thor put a hand on Bruce’s cheek, gently wiping away a tear with his thumb. Bruce looked up with absolute adoration at his savior. The man he loved. The man who _loved him back_. “Kiss me, Thor.” The god obliged, leaning down to tenderly brush their lips together. The barrier dropped.

“Finally!” Tony cried. “I can’t believe it took you guys _three months_.”

“You’re on thin ice, Tony. No more meddling in our romantic lives.” Bruce declared.

“Valentine’s Day is in two months and I can’t promise that I won’t do something.”

Bruce sighed. “At least leave me out of it. Ready to go, Thor?” The god took his hand, interlacing their fingers. “Of course, love.” Bruce smiled contently as they exited through the crowd that had gathered, barely hearing all of their congratulations. He could only seem to focus on Thor.

***

Bruce almost immediately passed out on his and Thor’s bed, exhausted from the events of the party. In his last moments of consciousness, he nestled into Thor’s side, feeling the god’s arms tighten around him. “I love you,” he mumbled softly. Thor buried a kiss in his curls. “I love you too.” They fell asleep in each other’s arms, both feeling at home.

Neither of them noticed the mistletoe Tony had hung above their bed.


End file.
